NGH BIBLE STUDY – ROMANS – OUTLINE #13
Outline #13: The Presentation of the believer as a slave to righteousness – Rm 6:15-23
Our passage continues Paul’s teaching on the believer’s sanctification by showing that freedom from sin does not mean freedom to live as we please. Having established that the believer has died with Christ and is no longer under the dominion of sin, Paul now emphasizes that every person serves a master. Through obedience from the heart to the gospel, believers have been liberated from slavery to sin and brought into a new position as slaves to righteousness. This new relationship is to be expressed through the deliberate presentation of our lives to God, resulting in practical holiness and spiritual fruit. The passage concludes by contrasting the two destinies: the eternal death of sin’s wages and God’s gracious gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Outline of Romans 6:15-23
Rm 6:15-16 – Possession: Whose slave am I?
Rm 6:17-18 – Position: What has God made me?
Rm 6:19-22 – Presentation: How should I now live?
Rm 6:23 – Payoff: Where does each path lead?
Themes to think about
- The reality of spiritual slavery, for better or for worse
- The transforming power of the gospel
- The believer’s responsibility to obey in sanctification
- The contrasting outcomes of serving two different masters
Questions for discussion
- What does Rm 6:17 teach us about the relationship between truth, faith and obedience?
- Linking the two parts of this chapter, what is the relationship between being freed from sin
(Rm 6:7) and becoming slaves to righteousness (Rm 6:18)? - Comparing Rm 6:13 to Rm 6:19, is Paul simply restating the exhortation regarding presenting ourselves and our members or is there a difference in emphasis to be observed? What are some practical ways in which our members can be presented as slaves of righteousness?
- Paul prompts believers to consider the fruit of their former way of life (Rm 6:20-21). How can this be helpful when facing present temptations to sin today?